Ron Rivera hints Panthers will look for a receiver in free agency

Cam Newton and Steve Smith have worked well together over the last two years, but the Panthers haven’t found a reliable second option at wide receiver for Newton’s passes.

It seems to be on their agenda for this offseason. During an appearance on the NFL Network Tuesday, Panthers coach Ron Rivera was asked if the team would be pursuing Steelers wide receiver Mike Wallace once free agency gets underway on March 12.

“You’re warm, but you know what’s going to be interesting is how things unfold once we get to March 12,” Rivera said. “There’s a lot of things that are out there that we have to really take into consideration. You know, we’ll see how things are going to affect us when we get to the 12th.”

One thing that the Panthers will have to take into consideration is their salary cap situation. The Panthers have work to do to get compliant with the cap by the start of free agency and a bidding war for the services of Wallace or any of the other top wideouts on the market probably isn’t the most fiscally prudent approach for them to take when you consider the makeup of the entire roster.

It’s a hint about what’s on the Panthers’ mind with free agency right around the corner, although one that might wind up being wishful thinking when contract figures start getting tossed around.